Industry leaders highlight Prime Minister’s emphasis on need for global framework for digital governance

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the 8th edition of India Mobile Congress during the  International Telecommunication Union – World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (ITU-WTSA) 2024 held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi today. WTSA is the governing conference for the standardization work of the International Telecommunication Union, the United Nations Agency for Digital Technologies, organized every four years. It is for the first time that the ITU-WTSA is being hosted in India and the Asia-Pacific. It is a pivotal global event that has brought together more than 3,000 industry leaders, policy-makers and tech experts from over 190 countries, representing telecom, digital, and ICT sectors.

Chairman of the Reliance JIO-INFOCOMM Limited, Shri Akash Ambani, commended Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for his visionary leadership, which has catalyzed India’s remarkable digital transformation. He said that in the third term, Shri Modi has positioned the Indian Mobile Congress (IMC) as a significant platform for innovation and collaboration, driving unprecedented growth in the digital sector. Shri Ambani noted that India has transitioned from a nation struggling with 2G speeds to becoming the world’s largest data market. He emphasized that India’s journey from ranking 155th in mobile broadband adoption to its current status demonstrates the power of synergy between government and industry. He further highlighted the inclusion of over 530 million unbanked Indians through initiatives like Jan Dhan accounts, with a significant portion being women. “Modi ji’s commitment to innovation has ensured that technology reaches every corner of our nation, leaving no one behind,” Shri Ambani stated. He proposed leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) as a transformative tool across various sectors, aiming for a developed India by 2047 and urged for updates to the data center policy to retain Indian data within the country, fostering a robust AI ecosystem.

Emphasizing Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision for a Digital India, Founder and Chairman of Bharti Airtel, Shri Sunil Bharti Mittal, reflected on India’s telecom journey, emphasizing its transformative progress in telecom infrastructure and digital technologies. He said, “the real transformation began in 2014 with Prime Minister Modi’s vision for a ‘Digital India,’ which ignited the 4G revolution. This has empowered millions, including those in our rural areas, to access smartphones and essential digital services.” He highlighted the transformative impact of 4G technology, which has brought smartphones and digital services to millions, including those in rural areas. He underscored the government’s initiatives to boost local manufacturing through the Production Linked Incentives (PLI) program, positioning India as a manufacturing hub for telecom equipment. “We are committed to reducing our dependence on imports. With initiatives like the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) program, we are transforming India into a manufacturing hub for telecom equipment,” he said. Discussing future ambitions, Mittal announced that India is set to lead in 5G technology, with extensive rollouts planned across urban and rural regions within the next 12 to 18 months. He also discussed the potential of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) networks, stating, “These networks will bridge the connectivity gap in our most challenging terrains, ensuring all Indians have access to fast internet services.”

Chairman of Aditya Birla Group, Shri Kumar Mangalam Birla highlighted the steadfast support by the government in consistently recognizing the importance of digital connectivity and introducing several reforms over the years to drive India towards an even more connected, empowered and inclusive digital nation. He lauded the government’s continued thrust on expanding digital infrastructure and accelerating digital adoption for people and businesses equally. Recalling the Prime Minister’s quote on MSME meaning maximum support to micro, small and medium enterprises, Shri Birla said that they are committed to providing maximum support by promoting digital transformation to India’s small businesses making them future ready. He laid emphasis on focus on technologies like 5G, IoT, AI and cloud services and expressed the belief that a thriving digital ecosystem can be created that empowers India’s MSMEs to drive economic growth. He  informed that India achieved the remarkable feat of 10 crore telecommunication consultations in tele-medicine and said that it is a matter of great pride for every Indian. Pointing out one of the most pressing issues being addressed by the government regulator and industry in the past year, Shri Birla touched upon spam control and fraud protection. Talking about  the potential of the Indian telecom sector he hailed the Prime Minister’s bold vision of a digital India. He expressed confidence that they would do their part with the continued support of the government, and help in realizing the Prime Minister’s digital India destiny. He thanked the government, partners and the entire telecom community for making the past year truly an exceptional one.

Secretary General ITU, Ms. Doreen Bogdan Martin said that it is a great honor to be present at the joint ceremony with the Prime Minister on the occasion of 2024 World Telecommunications Standardization Assembly and India Mobile Congress. She said that it is a powerful symbol of the deep ties between the ITU and India and recalled the meaningful conversation with the Prime Minister last year during the inauguration of ITU Area Office and Innovation Center. She spoke about world leaders coming together just a few weeks ago in New York and adopting the Pact of the Future and its global digital compact where a powerful message was sent out to the world about the digital future. She recalled the Prime Minister’s emphasis on the need for global digital governance and highlighted how he made India’s ambition very clear to lead by example and share its digital public infrastructure with the entire world. Referring to India’s G20 Presidency where DPI was a huge priority, Ms Bogdan Martin expressed delight in ITU becoming a knowledge partner. She underlined that the world has a lot to learn from India’s accomplishments with regard to unified payments interface. She stressed that standards build trust and that they are the engine which powers such platforms allowing them to operate at scale and providing every Indian with life-changing services through  mobile device access. Ms Bogdan Martin further added that trust nurtures inclusion and inclusion can unlock the full potential of digital and emerging technologies for everyone, including the third of humanity that’s still offline. She noted that this is a first-of-its-kind meet in Asia and called for bold collective action. She expressed confidence that in the next 10 days the role of international standards can be strengthened as the bedrock of global digital governance. She also touched upon ethical use of AI and urged to align technological progress with digital inclusion.